MINNEAPOLIS — In the final minutes of the lead-up to Super Bowl LII, it was mentioned that Bill Belichick and his son Steve seemed to be taking their traditional pre-game stroll around the field a little later than normal.

If that is true, we have come up with a theory for the delay: The Hoodie had been busy sabotaging his own game plan.

Ridiculous, right?

Well, by listening to all the next-day chatter, you’d think a last-minute roster decision by Belichick was as much responsible for the Philadelphia Eagles 41-33 beating of the New England Patriots as was another incredible post-season performance by backup quarterback Nick Foles.

The reality is, one of the best coaches in NFL history did not become so stupid as to bench Malcolm Butler, the hero of the Patriots’ dramatic Super Bowl win against the Seahawks three years ago, without just cause.

And his call was endorsed by defensive coordinator Matt Patricia, who is such a shrewd football mind that the Detroit Lions officially hired him as their head coach before most of us had finished breakfast Monday.

OK, so maybe Patricia’s defences did give up 61 points to Foles and Blake Bortles in the last two games — and it is the Lions. But Belichick knows what he’s doing. That is difficult to dispute.

The truth must be that Butler, who had played more snaps than any other Patriots defender this season, was actually not among the players that gave New England its best chance to win, criteria for field time Belichick referred to Sunday night.

When he says Butler was benched for all but one special teams play due to “football reasons,” you have to take him at his word. Surely it is wiser than those now being spoken by the all the experts who aren’t anywhere near the team and have nothing close to Belichick’s credentials.

And yet the barbecuing continues.

The lighter was provided by Butler, who was caught rubbing tears from his eyes during the national anthem and rolled his thumb on the little wheel again after the game, when intercepted by ESPN’s Mike Reiss and Adam Schefter on the way to the team bus.

“They gave up on me. (Expletive) It is what it is.” Butler said in frustration. “I don’t know what it was. I guess I wasn’t playing good if they didn’t feel comfortable. But I could have changed that game.”

Butler was replaced in the secondary by Eric Rowe, who says he found out just before game time that he’d be playing. Rowe was beaten by Alshon Jeffrey for a second-quarter touchdown, but it’s hard to imagine any DB could have prevented that score.

Somewhere, there’s more truth left untold.

There’s more to the benching than Belichick is letting on, and Butler is playing coy when he pretends not to know what it is. At some point, we’ll hear different pieces of the story. In time, we might get it all.

In the meantime, the rhetoric about Belichick “dividing the room” by sitting Butler is garbage. Teammates quit, or gave it less than they’re best, because they felt one of their friends was getting screwed over?

If that is indeed the case, the blame for defeat should be put on those players, not Belichick.

From this angle, the Patriots were just beaten by the better team, and that wouldn’t have been anything different had Butler played.

IN OTHER WORDS

It wasn’t shocking to hear Rob Gronkowski suggest he could retire after Sunday’s game. He’s only 28, but he’s had some very serious injuries and he’s already accomplished a lot in his career. Belichick wasn’t surprised to hear it either, although he’s not yet starting a scramble to find Gronk’s successor. “At the end of every season, every person goes through somewhat of a process. I think everyone involved in a NFL season, you get pretty drained, especially after a season like this,” Belichick told beat reporters on a Monday conference call. “The following year is the following year. It’s the same for everybody. I certainly can’s speak for anybody else, but I would say five minutes after the game, or the day after the game, is not really the time to make those decisions.” If you’re making a bet, go with Gronk returning … Just as he was getting up from his post-game podium Sunday night, I asked Fletcher Cox if the Eagles are still underdogs. “We’re the world champions,” he said with the grin of a man who was caught playing a disrespect card he never did believe in … Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson will get some help from brewing companies to hold up his promise of buying “everybody” beer if the team won the Super Bowl. In fact, I would guess he won’t have to reach into his pocket at all. The suds will be flowing when the Eagles hold their championship parade Thursday morning (probably delayed until then to give city workers more time to grease up the poles). It will run from the corner of Broadway and Pattison to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Yes, the Rocky Balboa steps. How Philadelphia. How fitting … Two last questions: It’s about a beer giveaway at a championship parade in Philly — what could possibly go wrong? … And finally, in a related matter, can somebody please explain why “fans” who are supposed to be celebrating, like to set things on fire? It’s just idiotic.

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